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Tropical Storm Lee expected to become ‘extremely dangerous hurricane’ by weekend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:44:57 GMT

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Another major hurricane could be on the horizon as Tropical Storm Lee took shape in the central tropical Atlantic Ocean Tuesday evening.The National Hurricane Center said Lee formed over the central tropical Atlantic about 900 miles west-southwest of Cape Verde. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph with higher gusts. 2 bitten by shark at same Florida beach, officials say The NHC said Lee is “expected to rapidly intensify into an extremely dangerous hurricane by the end of the weekend.”The NHC is also tracking a strong tropical wave that is forecast to move off the coast of West Africa on Tuesday.Once the wave moves offshore, the NHC said a tropical depression could form over the far eastern tropical Atlantic during the middle to the latter part of the week.The system is expected to move across Cape Verde Wednesday night and Thursday. It has a 70 percent chance of formation over the next seven days.The NHC also said Post-Tropical Cyclone Franklin "co...

Texas DPS driver license appointments canceled Tuesday due to system outage

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:44:57 GMT

TEXAS (KXAN) — An outage in the Texas Department of Public Safety's driver license system led to cancellations of all driver license appointments Tuesday, a spokesperson confirmed to KXAN.Driver's license offices across the state closed Friday through Labor Day weekend for a system update, DPS said previously."The department is working to identify the issue, which is related to the driver's license system update that took place over the weekend, and get it fixed as quickly as possible. We apologize for the inconvenience," the spokesperson added.The offices were expected to reopen Tuesday morning.The outage is impacting all driver license services provided by Texas DPS, including renewing or replacing licenses or identification cards, obtaining a driver record and verifying one's eligibility both online and at offices statewide.As a result, the spokesperson confirmed all of Tuesday's appointments were canceled, and impacted customers have been contacted.

Finally, tracking a cool front and scattered thunderstorms next week

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:44:57 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Following a work week of record high temperatures, we are finally tracking promising signs of wetter, milder weather next week.Hottest early-September period on recordFollowing a record-tying warm morning in Austin on Tuesday (record: 79°, set in 2015), another record warm morning is expected on Wednesday.Afternoon high temperatures rise 10-15° above September averages through the rest of the work week, setting daily record high temperatures by as much as 6° margins with a potential high temperature of 108° in Austin on Friday. Heat Advisories and Excessive Heat Warnings will likely be issued areawide Thursday through Saturday, with some of Austin's hottest September temperatures on record expected.Hottest September temperatures ever recorded in Austin. We will likely record the second-hottest Sep. temperature in Austin on Friday.Wetter, milder weather next weekAt last, we are tracking promising signs of wetter, cooler weather next work week. An eastern Pacific Hurr...

We Are Blood expanding LGBTQ blood donor eligibility with updated FDA guidelines

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:44:57 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Starting Wednesday, We Are Blood (WRB) will implement the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) updated guidance removing eligibility criteria based on the gender of donors and their sexual partners, according to a news release from WRB. This move will safely allow additional members of the community to donate blood.The new FDA guidance revises blood donor eligibility questionnaires for blood centers across the country, according to WRB. The new guidance removes time-based deferrals and eligibility questions specific to "males who have sex with males and females who have sex with males who have sex with males," the release said.This updated guidance was issued by the FDA following a years-long study with community blood centers across the U.S. to evaluate safe alternatives to prior guidance, the release said. The new guidance is similar to those already in place in the United Kingdom and Canada, according to WRB.New questions will be the same for every donor, regardl...

St. David's Medical Center welcomes new chief medical officer

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:44:57 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — St. David's Medical Center has a new chief medical officer on its leadership team, officials announced Tuesday.Dr. Rodolfo "Rudy" O. Garza began operating in his new role Aug. 28. Previously, Garza had served as chief medical officer at Methodist Hospital Northeast in San Antonio. During his work at that 237-bed acute care facility, he helped create advance patient treatment plans "to better support cardiothoracic surgery and oncology services," per a release.“Dr. Garza has a proven track record of improving clinical results during his nearly two decades in hospital leadership roles,” Todd Steward, chief executive officer of St. David’s Medical Center, said in the release. “Under his guidance, patients at St. David’s Medical Center will continue to receive the highest standard of medical care.”Before serving at Methodist Hospital Northeast, Garza worked as an associate chief medical officer at Methodist Hospital in San Antonio, as well as a medical director of a dial...

Whataburger opens first 'digital kitchen' in Austin

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:44:57 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Whataburger fans have a new way to order their next burger, honey butter chicken biscuit or other favorite food in Austin.The company's first Whataburger Digital Kitchen opened Tuesday at 3201 Bee Caves Road in the West Lake Hills area. This is the fast-food chain's first digital-only, cashless model. PREVIOUS: Whataburger to put first ‘digital kitchen’ in Austin The San Antonio-based company said its new concept gives customers an "exclusively to-go experience."So, how does a digital kitchen work? Guests can place orders ahead online or in the Whataburger app. If someone forgets to order ahead, there are kiosks on-site, according to Whataburger. Then, orders can be picked up in the "Digital Pick-up Lane" or in exterior, weather-resistant lockers. Orders can be picked up in the "Digital Pick-up Lane" or in exterior, weather-resistant lockers. (Courtesy Whataburger)Orders can be placed online, in Whataburger's app or at a kiosk. (Courtesy Whataburger)Whataburger op...

Minnesota scientists gain key insights into parasite that’s threatening state’s moose population

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:44:57 GMT

GRAND PORTAGE, Minn. — Scientists have known for decades that Minnesota moose are dying from a brainworm called P. tenuis, but they were never quite sure how the moose acquired the parasite.Now they know a little more.The brainworm, which is moved around the forest by white-tailed deer but is harmless to deer, must pass through a snail or slug before it gets to the moose, and scientists with the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and the University of Minnesota have confirmed some of snails are to blame and how the moose are picking them up.Their findings were published in the recent edition of the Journal of Wildlife Diseases.The brainworm isn’t the only reason Minnesota’s moose population crashed over the past 30 years, but they are one of the biggest reasons. Seth Moore, director of environment for the Grand Portage Band, said brainworm is killing up to 30% of the adult moose he’s been studying for the past 18 years at the tip of Minnesota’s Arrowhead region...

David French: Ban online porn for kids

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:44:57 GMT

New Yorkers above a certain age remember the old Times Square. If you created a list of words to describe it, “depraved” would be near the top. Peep shows, adult bookstores and live sex shows stretched on for block after block. But New York was hardly alone; major cities across the country had their own red-light districts. When I started my freshman year at a college in Nashville, Tennessee, the city’s Lower Broadway was a miniature version of Times Square. To reach the tiny, tourist-friendly sectors of downtown, you had to drive down Lower Broadway, past peep shows, strip clubs and open prostitution.And now? While no one would call Times Square entirely family friendly, it is radically different from the 1970s version captured in HBO’s prostitution-and-porn series “The Deuce.” So is downtown Nashville, now called the bachelorette capital of America. Lower Broadway is so packed with tourists that locals steer clear — not because it is debauched but because it is just so darn crowde...

Robin Abcarian: The problematic use of ‘problematic’ to shut down people with whom we disagree

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:44:57 GMT

My first unpleasant encounter with the current meaning of the word “problematic” occurred a couple of years ago.I was mingling with some 20- and 30-somethings at an outdoor birthday party in San Francisco. It was a bit chilly, as San Francisco usually is, but a distinct and quite different chill fell over my little conversation group as we began to discuss Ben Stiller’s “Tropic Thunder,” the hilarious (in my opinion) movie that spoofed Hollywood careerism and war movies.I don’t remember why, exactly, we were talking about a film that came out in 2008. But all these years later, I said, I was still laughing at Tom’s Cruise surprising role as fat-fingered, balding studio boss Les Grossman, a filthy-mouthed bully who — it was rumored — was based on the producer Scott Rudin and/or Harvey Weinstein, legendary industry monsters who both happen to be Jewish.One woman looked at me and said, “That role was problematic.”“...

Gophers women’s golf: Simley grad Isabella McCauley notches her first collegiate victory

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:44:57 GMT

One of Isabella McCauley’s goals upon her arrival at the University of Minnesota last fall was to win at the college level. A year into her Gophers career, the Simley High School graduate has officially checked that box.McCauley won The Boilermaker Classic on Tuesday, logging a final-round 3-under 69 to secure the 54-hole title. All three of the sophomore’s rounds were in the 60s in West Lafayette, Ind., as McCauley finished with a 12-under score of 204 for the tournament. That’s five shots better than McCauley’s best tournament score from her freshman season.The 12-under tally was also three shots better than her nearest competition — Purdue senior Kan Bunnabodee. The Boilermakers won the team championship with a gross score of 12-under par. Alabama was second at 6 under, and Minnesota was third after three consecutive rounds of even-par 288 as a team.Hailey Loh finished in a tie for 17th for Minnesota at 3 over, while Sara Tomaszewski came in tied for 22nd ...